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y all four of the other chambers. Van der Capellen reported that the discussion had caused tempers to flare and sewn dangerous disunity. In his view, the trades to Angola and Guinea were “the soul of the company.” 4 Opening either region to private merchants would undermine a critical source of revenue, with potentially catastrophic implications. But Amsterdam persisted, and when the Heren XIX gathered in Middelburg in September of 1645 item seven on the agenda asked, “How more blacks could be purchased at St. Paulo do Loanda” and “in what manner the trade in blacks shall be improved.” 5 Chapters Three and Four have examined politics within the Heren XIX from the perspective of competing visions for colonial administration, first at home and then abroad. This chapter looks instead at competing visions for the administration of trade. In particular, it explores how trade policy was used to balance the competing priorities of ensuring a smooth flow of goods, populating Brazil, and distributing the heavy financial burden of defending the WIC's conquests. In practice this manifested in a series of debates over whether trade within the territory defined by the company's charter should be open to all citizens of the United Provinces or reserved exclusively as a company monopoly. The Dutch Republic was probably more responsive to merchant interests than any government in Europe, but in practice this meant applying a wide range of different policies to different sectors and social groups: while, for instance, fishing and textiles were heavily regulated, finance and many branches of trade were                                                          4 Ibid. “Watter voor is geweest by eenige Bewinthebberen en hooftparticipanten van de Camer van Amsterdam om den handel op Angola wederom open te stellen voor yder een, hoe kostich sich die andere Cameren daertegens hebben gedeclareert. Wat oneenicheyt daeraf te verwachten stondt tuschen die camer van Amsterdam ende andere Cameren tot verachteringe en Discredyt van Westind. Companye, en soo sulx met goede reden is voorgekomen hoe de Negoty, prinsipalyck op Guinea en Angola is de Ziele der Compagnie, en hoe met aftrockinge ofte verminderinge van de selve de ruine der Compagnye wort veroorsaekt.” 5 NA 1.01.04, inv.nr. 5758, Poincten waerop all de Cameren van de West Indische Comp. beschreven worden ... Dated August 11, 1645. “wt de schriftelycke ende mondelinge advisen de comp. bekent synde dat Jaerlycx ongelyck meerder swaarten in St. paulo de loanda connen werden gehandelt als tot noch toe is geschiet, wanneer met behoorlyck cargasoen de cust sal werden versien, ende dat midts dien het proffyt, t' welcke in die conqueste streeckt voor de comp. daerwt niet wordt getrocken, is ter vergaderinge van XIX op den 30 Junio 1645 goetgevonden dat een poinct sal gemaect worden, hoe, ende op wat manniere den handel ende de negros best sullen werden gebeneficeert derhalven de Cameren verdracht willen syn derselver gecommitt. hierop insgelycx te lasten.”   173
left relatively open. 6 Where monopolies were imposed—including trade to the East and West Indies—they became the subject of intense criticism. Rather than promoting trade as a whole, monopolies by their very nature promoted the interests of some merchants and social groups above those of others; their intent, as Oscar Gelderblom has encouraged us to see, was political rather than strictly commercial. 7 This was already an important issue during the protracted negotiations to establish the WIC in the first two decades of the seventeenth century, but it erupted with particular force in the mid-1630s, when a heated debate broke out over the company's monopoly over trade to Brazil. Although the WIC charter strictly forbade private trade, a series of agreements negotiated during the late 1620s and early 1630s offered important exemptions. In 1628 both New Netherland and parts of the “Wild Coast” along the northern tip of South America were opened to private entrepreneurs who wished to establish settlements. 8 Then, in 1630, when the company seized Recife and Olinda in northeastern Brazil, treaties negotiated with representatives of the Portuguese community promised that private merchants would enjoy the same freedoms to trade on their own account that they had enjoyed under the King of Portugal. 9 These treaties were reinforced by regulations approved by the States General in 1630 that permitted private trade in all goods but dyewoods, foodstuffs, and ammunition, so long as private merchants registered their goods, transported them in company ships, and paid a percentage to the company in recognition and freight fees. 10 In 1634 these regulations were further relaxed and a brisk private                                                          6 D.C. Coleman, "Introduction" to his own edited collection, D. C. Coleman, ed., Revisions in Mercantilism (London: Methuen & Co., 1969), 12; De Vries and Van der Woude, The First Modern Economy. 7 Oscar Gelderblom, ed., The political economy of the Dutch Republic (Farnham: Ashgate, 2009). 8 Rink, Holland on the Hudson; Jacobs, The colony of New Netherland; Venema, Kiliaen van Rensselaer (1586- 1643): Designing a New World. 9 Boxer, The Dutch in Brazil, 1624-1654, 75–76. 10 Articulum ... over het Open ende Vry Stellen van den Handel en Negotie op de Stadt Olinda de Pernambuco, ende Custen van Brasil (Amsterdam, 1630).   174
Page 1 and 2:
GOVERNING THE FREE SEA: THE DUTCH W
Page 3 and 4:
Abstract This dissertation takes a
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IV. “In the Service of Merchants
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for making the archive such an enjo
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Institute for International and Reg
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List of Tables 1. Delegates to the
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Illustration 1. Het West-Indische H
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eported to have said; any money sen
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nexus of commerce and power for whi
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Europe the Dutch Republic is emblem
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Although the VOC frequently used vi
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Van Dillen argued that over time th
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the Western Hemisphere.” 46 Far f
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anxieties it generated, and what pl
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capital from Zeeland in the south a
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number of document series within th
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character of Dutch political instit
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Illustration 2. Vergaderzaal van he
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ecords must be traced backwards—a
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of note.” 93 But it is clear that
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formative periods in the company’
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enhance the role of central authori
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trade in which the company had only
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5. A Note on Sources This dissertat
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1645. 110 The manuscript is found i
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period 1620-1636. 115 For the remai
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at São Salvador da Bahia de Todos
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the revolt pushed the colony’s fa
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Amsterdam newspapers did publish st
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year by the Hoge ende Secrete Raad
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the Portuguese, had crossed the Rio
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ead aloud, two resolutions were pas
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On Wednesday, the same day the ship
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with subtle differences of fact and
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The group consisted of Henderick Sc
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XIX. Each chamber selected delegate
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Inden naeme den heeren amen Saturn.
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Middelburg’s decidedly incestuous
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Illustration 6. Portrait of Johanne
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crucial role that he played in its
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When the meeting resumed on Monday
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and to steer the discussion towards
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were chosen from among the ranks of
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emphasized the considerable sums in
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4. Johannes de Laet as “Informati
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devote myself to my books.” 129 A
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interests were adequately represent
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De Laet's substantive work in the A
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that, even at the beginning, De Lae
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De Laet’s presence at the meeting
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confessions under interrogation and
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Brazil this meant the Heren XIX, wh
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Illustration 7. Portrait of Willem
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peaceful settlement along the fring
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By analyzing the successive changes
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convene in Amsterdam; the following
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This formulation, which must previo
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Amsterdam or Middelburg. 29 In this
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(1566-1626), later burgemeester of
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placed next to his description of t
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That these two provisions remained
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provinces. The creation of the WIC
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The result was that the delegates f
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to the original charter gave the ch
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thus shows the political—as oppos
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1/10 of the equipagie and two direc
Page 133 and 134: taken place. Once the draft letter
Page 135 and 136: Table 5. Seating for the delegation
Page 137 and 138: phase of the company’s Groot Dess
Page 139 and 140: to be understood the sending over o
Page 141 and 142: But by far the most important trans
Page 143 and 144: Illustration 8. Map of Mauritstad a
Page 145 and 146: geographers whose works remain a tr
Page 147 and 148: important military, administrative,
Page 149 and 150: noblemen played in overseas adminis
Page 151 and 152: good order, police and justice, and
Page 153 and 154: the council's size and authority, d
Page 155 and 156: servants. These individuals may not
Page 157 and 158: At this point the election was comp
Page 159 and 160: (Receiver General) of the United Pr
Page 161 and 162: Why did these candidates all refuse
Page 163 and 164: Alexander's name was almost certain
Page 165 and 166: None of the remaining records indic
Page 167 and 168: would be profitable and that their
Page 169 and 170: Haecxs thanked them for the honor t
Page 171 and 172: On June 22, 1645—just a week befo
Page 173 and 174: 5. Wolter Schonenborch and the Ritu
Page 175 and 176: with the WIC presumably did not go
Page 177 and 178: Haecx recorded in his diary that on
Page 179 and 180: wavered, for De Laet, who was many
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Page 183: 1. Introduction Chapter Five Free T
Page 187 and 188: community saw greater profits in pr
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Page 191 and 192: trouble paying its bills, especiall
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Page 197 and 198: With the verhoging stalled, and ani
Page 199 and 200: e handled without gloves.” 55 In
Page 201 and 202: “walking the land half-naked” f
Page 203 and 204: While the resolution as a whole sho
Page 205 and 206: along with the two powerful Amsterd
Page 207 and 208: Cornelis Melijn, of a patroonschap
Page 209 and 210: this measure, he said, “no one in
Page 211 and 212: maintaining the company's solvency,
Page 213 and 214: colony, overestimated the number of
Page 215 and 216: And Maurits offered another argumen
Page 217 and 218: Stellingwerf, who sat in the States
Page 219 and 220: Provinces, plus smaller fees of 3%
Page 221 and 222: exclude private merchants from the
Page 223 and 224: clamoring for slaves. 136 The probl
Page 225 and 226: expedition's success, along with de
Page 227 and 228: trading locations on the Gold Coast
Page 229 and 230: directly from New Netherland, and s
Page 231 and 232: over trade was simply the projectio
Page 233 and 234: the area in which the company was b
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had not yet been renewed. 4 As the
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to the Dutch state, and that this d
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ookkeeping from late-fifteenth cent
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ambitions. 21 Although neither Spec
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expenses at each of the company's c
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included. 34 In Specx’s estimatio
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calculations yielded a profit of 41
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notes on these documents, suggest t
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It was, of course, a fiction. With
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to hang from the body [...] This sh
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van West-Indien (New World, or a De
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title page of the revised edition a
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It occurred to me that these miracu
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third in the Kort Verhael. This rep
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This extraordinary conclusion might
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enemy” and the positive effects o
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appeared in the late 1630s in the c
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versus settlement. He was also more
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An exceptionally cold winter delaye
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failure of Dutch imperialism from t
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that focuses on political and imper
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support to the WIC, but they also i
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Maurits predicted and which was not
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British Library Additional Manuscri
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Burke, Peter. A Social History of K
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Goffman, Erving. Frame Analysis: An
Page 287 and 288:
Jonge, J. K. J. De Oorsprong van Ne
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Noorlander, Danny L. “Serving God
Page 291 and 292:
Smith, Adam. An Inquiry into the Na
Page 293:
1624-1654, edited by Marianne L. Wi
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